Different

Chapter 10

"Come on, Sponge, are you going to attack or not?"

"I can't wait to stab you." I tell Erik.

A dagger appears in my hand and I charge forward, he holds up a palm and I'm pushed off my feet and backwards. I land on my back and skid a few feet across the slick surface of the underground bunker.

"You can do better than that." He says as I roll onto my side and stand back up. "Come on, attack me."

I charge again and am pushed back by the same force.

"If I were you, I wouldn't attack with the metal in my hand." He advises as I straighten up again.

I hesitate a moment and make the dagger disappear before I charge forward. This time I wait until I'm less than a foot from him before the blade reappears in my hand and once again I'm pushed back several yards.

"You're too predictable." He observes. "What did you do in the ring?"

"Usually I was one of the more experienced." I charge forward again, this time with no weapon, and strike down on him with the side of my hand. He blocks the strike with his forearm and I block his next attack.

"What was your training before?" He blocks the strike at his side.

"In the Highlands, Celtic and Viking influence," I reply as we continue back and forth. "Taught to hunt and a few other things. I learned more martial arts during my time in the ring."

He grabs my arm and shoulder and drops to his knees to flip me over on my back.

"So tap into that." He looks down at me. "Come on, where's your time in that ring and that year you spent after in London? You're going too easy."

I kick up at him and he falls on his back. He gets to his feet almost immediately and I strike at him harder and faster than I was going before. A knife materializes in my palm and I strike at his shoulder. The knife stops just before it reaches his collarbone.

"Good." He says as we're inches apart. "But you're still not going hard enough." He pushes the knife, and me, backwards. "Don't think about hurting me, think of Shaw," He says as he advances towards me and we strike at each other. "Think of whoever else attacked you. You're better than this. What're you going to do when you see them next are you gonna play around with them or are you gonna go in for the kill?" He's trying to aggravate me. "Focus, Ilsa. What're you going to do?"

My frustration builds and in the heat of the moment a burst of lightning lashes out from my fist and slams into his chest that sends him flying back halfway across the bunker.

"Oh shit," He lands roughly on his back and I run over to him. "Erik?" I crouch beside him to make sure he's alive.

"Yeah. I'm fine." He says as I apologize profusely. "Well done." I help him sit up and he winces in pain.

"I didn't mean-"

"That'll be the next part." Charles speaks up. "Are you alright?" He asks Erik.

"Never better."